Of Course, Sweetheart
by GimmeSomeSolace
Summary: When Chiron decides to simulate being the parents of a "quarter-god", Nico is paired with a sunny, happy-go-lucky son of Apollo. But even with spontaneous combustion, temporary tents, and the flour bag that just won't die no matter how many cliffs you drop it off, can this boy possible be stealing his heart?
1. Sweetheart 3

"I'm not going to give this up until you explain why you're being so cryptic." A very disgruntled son of Hades clutched the slip of paper with his name written in spidery writing. Clarisse shifted the plain wooden box, the torn pieces thudding mutely against the sides.

"It's all going to be explained in the presentation." Clarisse had been drafted into collecting everyone's paper, and she was getting impatient. "Come on. Giving me a piece of paper with your _name_ on it won't hurt you." She narrowed her eyes and pushed her bluntly chopped hair behind her ear with her free hand. "But_ I _will if you don't give me the paper." Nico eyed her suspiciously, loosening his hold the tiniest bit. In an instant, Clarisse had plucked it out of his hand and slipped it through the slit in the box.

"Hey!" He glowered at her. His hand twitched towards his sword, but he withdrew it when Clarisse didn't look at all intimidated.

"I'm not a spineless worm," She snapped. "I'm not scared of you. Actually, I think you're pretty cool." She crossed her arms, the box digging into the side of her elbow. "You can fight." Nico raised an eyebrow.

"You're saying that because you feel sorry for me." He said flatly. Clarisse shrugged.

"Well, yeah. You're a sad little misanthrope, and frankly, it freaks me out a bit." She turned, her sword rattling against in the sheath.

"Wow," Nico mumbled to the wall. "Three syllable word. The effort must be frying her brain."

"I'm not dumb," Clarisse growled over her shoulder. "I just think diplomacy is stupid. The train of the future is zooming towards Ripping Each Other Apart Station, not signing some idiotic treaty and singing Kumbaya. I figure holding on to the ways of the past is useless. We all better jump on the caboose or die." With that eloquent speech, she tossed her hair and continued walking to the training arena, stopping to threaten a Hermes kid into giving her his paper. Nico shook his head, retreating back into his cabin, the door clicking into place behind him. He wasn't misanthropic! He just didn't think it was worth it to know people. People who would turn away, and stab you in the back. People were the rough draft of the world's better creatures. People were- OK, denial was pointless. He was a creepy hermit who spent all his time digging up plans of how to be antisocial. Wonderful. He drummed his fingers impatiently on his desk, glancing out the window at a band of campers playing a makeshift game of volleyball with a tied-up wad of camp t-shirts. The manager of the camp store was yelling at them furiously, trying to grab his lost property. Nico grabbed a fistful of the shade and pulled it down so hard, it rebounded as soon as he let go.

Chiron galloped onto the wooden platform and pounded his hoof against a thin slab of metal. The hollow noise rang throughout the pavilion, and the curious murmuring ceased almost instantly. Chiron smiled at the cooperation.

"Thank you! I know you might be curious about the slips of paper…" Travis and Connor Stoll crossed their arms and started into their twin comedy act.

"Well, yeah…"

"We're freaked out, too."

"Did we transfer our soul to you when we signed the paper?"

"Yeah, are you going to sell our souls?"

"To bigfoot?"

"A sphynx?"

"A GRYFFIN?"

"Dude, as long as she's hot and not picky, I can stand not having a soul."  
>"Chiron, as your best buds, will you, out of your wonderously soft heart and intelligent mind, please sell us to a sexy mermaid queen?" Travis leaned against a wooden beam and conspicuously fanned himself with a stack of bills. Chiron frowned, and banged his hoof against the metal again to cut off the worried whispers zinging across the room like wildfire.<p>

"No. This is actually a camp activity. Demigods, if they have children, won't automatically have an easier life. Monsters will still appear, demigods turned to the other side will appear… it's extremely hard to take care of a child and be-head a manticore at the same time. And you will need to be prepared, as even quarter-gods need to be trained to fight. This simulation-" Chiron was completely drowned out. _We're going to have children? No, you idiot, just _fake_ children. What do you use for fake children?_ And so on.

"Attention!" Chiron shouted. Everyone faded to a murmur. "We put the girls' names in one bowl, the boys' in a another and drew them out at random. You will live with your husband or wife for three weeks- thank you to the Hunters, who pitched mini-tents so that you may live in privacy in the woods." Thalia Grace inclined her head slightly, her silver circlet glowing faintly, and the rest of the Hunters curtseyed politely. "These tents will be spaced at a good distance from each other. As the parent of a quarter god, you will need to be a good distance away from neighbors. At the end, we will see who took the best care of their child. The winners will be excused from dish duty, _and_ given extra dessert privileges for three months." Nico sighed and shifted his weight. It was worth it to do dishes for a year if he didn't have to participate in this. "Babies will be labeled with the names of the parents." Chiron frowned. "Some of you will be paired with the same gender, as there is a greater number of boys. I am sorry if you're disappointed." Nico froze. Bad enough to be paired with a girl, who he probably wouldn't care much about, but a_ boy?_ Who came up with this? If it was Dionysus, he would be dead by nightfall. Nico slunk away to sit behind a pillar as a rustle of excitement rose in the air and people pushed to get to the "babies".

"Miranda! Yes!"

"Hah, I got John!"

"Ooooh! He's _hot!_"

Nico sat bolt upright as a nearby voice drowned out the others.

"Mr. di Angelo," A bag of flour clobbered him, knocking him over. Granted, since he was sitting down, he didn't have far to fall, but still. "You are the proud papa of a healthy baby girl." Nico shoved the bag off of him, slapping at his shirt to rid himself of the cloud that puffed up from the bag on impact. He looked up. Wonderful. A guy. His luck really sucked, didn't it? A beaming Will Solace loomed above him, clapping flour off of his hands. Nico sighed, bracing himself against the pillar to scooch up.

"How do you know it's a girl?" Nico asked, hefting it over his back. Will moved to take it, but Nico backed away. Will didn't seem offended.

"I don't know… but we're supposed to name it, and I think it'll be easier to come up with a female name." Will grimaced. "This simulation is ridiculous." Nico's lips quirked up in a smile. "Sorry I almost knocked you out." Will's hand moved to the back of Nico's head, and Nico stumbled away. "Sorry! Sorry! Just making sure you don't have a lump." Nico felt like an idiot. What was he doing? Acting like a skittish baby _fawn_. He was old enough to behave like a normal human being.

"It's… it's OK. Don't worry." He fumbled to grab the bag of flour he had dropped."\

"Gods, Nico," Will's laughter seemed to be on the verge of bubbling out. "I think you just killed her."

"This is auspicious," Nico grumbled sarcastically, a fizzy feeling, like ginger ale, shooting through him when Will gave up trying to stay grave and laughed.

"Let's pick a tent." He smiled warmly as Nico, who arranged his numb lips into some sort of shape. Nico fixed the flour bag on his back, and headed towards the woods.

"Where are we going?" Will asked pleasantly, his ever-present smile still plastered on his face.

"As far as we can get from other people," Nico grumbled. "I want privacy. I don't want everyone to see Nico di Angelo doing… these kind of things." He gestured at the bag of flour. Will's smile grew mischievous.

"Sorry to disappoint, sweetheart, but I don't roll that way." Nico's cheeks heated until someone could comfortably roast marshmallows over them.

"Don't try to twist my words!" He sputtered.

"Sorry, sweetheart, but it's too fun to make the unshakeable Nico di Angelo blush." Will drawled, tracing his hand down Nico's arm lightly. Nico swatted him away.

"Go nurse the baby, Solace." He tossed the bag of flour towards him.

"Oof!" Will did catch it, if not neatly. "Now, now, is that any way to treat me?" Nico rolled his eyes.

"Go!" He said, exasperated.

"After little one is put to bed, maybe we can have some fun, huh?" Will leaned closer, making Nico blush harder. "After all, sweetie, you are my husband." Nico inwardly groaned. This was going to be a long three weeks.

**This is a multi chap! MY FIRST ONE ON THIS ACCOUNT! Whoo!**


	2. Pinky-Promise?

"Oh my gods! Oh my freaking gods! NICO DI ANGELO GET IN HERE!" Nico jolted awake, blinking the room into focus. "THIS IS NOT A NORMAL BAG OF FLOUR!" Will yelled, the lovely sound waves zooming directly from the kitchen. Nico scooped up a random object and sprinted towards the kitchen, ready to hit any monster attacking their tent with a- he looked down- crappy, robin-egg-blue lamp that, when turned on, blinked on and off like a firefly on drugs. Nico shook away his thoughts, charging through the swinging door. Will had thrown the burlap bag into the sink, the handle for the faucet pushed as high as it could go. Steam was pouring through the room, mingling with the light from the window Will had thrown open, evidently from panic, creating a see-through film of gently drifting tendrils of mist.

"What the Hades?!" Nico's eyes traveled around the room, and he lowered the lamp slowly, resting it on the table. He frowned. "What's with the smoke? It looks like a scene from _Macbeth_ in here!" Will turned the water off, and leaned against the sink, twisting to face Nico after a minute.

"The baby caught on fire," Will said, dead serious. Nico blinked.

"The baby _what?"_ Nico let go of the lamp, leaning over the flour bag. Besides being sopping wet, it wasn't the least bit charred. "No, it didn't. It couldn't have. Look at it, not a single burned patch." Nico snorted, and dropped the bag in Will's arms. Will opened his mouth, most likely to argue, but Nico swung towards the tent door as he heard a scream coming from another tent, this one more female-sounding. Will's head snapped up, and he bolted towards the door, throwing the sopping wet bag of flour at Nico in his haste to get to the door.

"Will, what are- oof!" Nico didn't dodge the sack fast enough, and got clipped in the arm, but managed to push it off and run after Will. "Solace! Slow down!" Will nimbly dodged roots and trees, leaping like a gazelle over a small river trickling down a cluster of rocks. Nico, of course, managed to trip over a tree root, smacked his arm into a branch, and douse his shoes with water.

Yipes.

"Lacy, are you OK?" Lacy looked a complete and utter mess. Her blonde hair had lost its luster. Her blue eyes weren't sparkling. Her clothes were in utter disarray.

"Nico… why are you soaking wet?" Lacy sounded dazed. Nico looked down at his clothes. _Damn that idiotic bag of flour…_

"The flour… we had to… oh, Gods, never mind." Nico tried to wring out the hem of his jacket. Will studied her, a concerned look settling across his face.

"Lacy, you're awfully pale. You look like you might-" Lacy wavered, and started to tip, falling straight into Nico's arms.

"Really?" Nico looked down at the unconscious girl. He held his arms straight out, like the tines of a fork, and carefully deposited her against Will, quickly yanking his hands back into his pockets. "I think beautiful girls who suddenly collapse unconscious might be a bit more up your alley." Will shifted Lacy so that she was leaning against a tree. He looked offended. "What do you mean by that?" Nico's reply was cut off by a flying, beige lump shooting out of the tent.

"Nam sagittis furca mihi. O di, est a Deo sto ad me iecit a furca." Pollux stumbled out of the tent.

"What?" Will left off propping Lacy against the tree and letting her sink to the ground. Nico narrowed his eyes.

"Let me get this straight. It shot a _fork_ at you? A _fork?_ Pollux, you've survived two of the biggest wars in history, and you're reduced to a stumbling, drunken idiot by a bag of flour shooting a _fork_ at you?" Will frowned at Nico.

"He's not drunk, he's in shock. Panic makes brains work differently. Gods, when I started screaming this morning, you came charging in with a two dollar lamp." Nico scowled. Will shrugged, and hefted Lacy up. "I'm gonna take her inside. She'll be fine, don't worry. She just needs to come to." Nico tried to add something to the conversation, focusing on ignoring the two dollar lamp comment.

"Hazel'd probably have smelling salts. I can go get her if you-" Nico broke off. Everyone was staring at him. Why was everybody staring at him? Nico shifted his weight from one foot to the other.

"Nico. Honey." Will spoke calmly, his voice slightly strained. "This is the twenty-first century. We don't use smelling salts. I'm not even sure if you used smelling salts in the fifties. Catch up." Nico cursed Leo's How to Behave When You've Been Sucked Out Of Time lessons. _Of course they don't use smelling salts!_ He scolded himself. _That was for Victorian times, for heaven's sake!_ Pollux's eyebrows shot up.

"Honey? Oh…" He looked from face to face. "Are you two dating? Have you kissed? Did you bribe Chiron to get you in the same cabin?" Pollux was practically giggling. "Hallelujah! You two are three days away from me being out twenty drachmas." He shook his head. "Never, ever make a bet with the Hermes kids."

"No! We aren't..."

"That's ridiculous, we would never…"

"Sunny here is…"

"Ghosty's probably…"

Pollux just laughed. Will threw up his hands, dropping Lacy. Pollux ran forward to catch her, dragging her inside, shooting wry glances over his shoulder all the while.

"So…" Will looked uncomfortable. Nico stared at the mountains. "I think all of the flour bags have some weird thing with them. Ours is a fire user, theirs is probably an Ares kid as proven by the fork incident…" Will trailed off. Nico could _feel_ Will's gaze. "Um… let's go back to our cabin." Nico stared at the distant mountains more intently

"Sure." Will looked relieved he was talking, even if it was just a little, but still looked nervous.

**NotANormalBagofFlourNotANormalBagofFlourNotANormalBagofFlourNotANormalBagof**

The walk "home" was... awkward. Once they reached the tent, Nico went to one of the two twin beds in the bedroom, and Will knocked around the kitchen for a while. Nico stared at the silver fabric of the tent blowing in the wind, shimmering in a way that was both pretty and _really_ headache-causing.

"Nico?" Will was suddenly behind him. "Sorry about the… sorry about Pollux." Nico kept staring at the wall, but let out a sigh.

"It's not your fault. I'm just… just really sick of all of this." Nico dug his nails into his palms, feeling Will's presence _way_ more than he should. It didn't help that the closer Will stepped, the warmer the room seemed to get.

"Even before my friends found out I was… well, you know…" Nico didn't look away from the tent. "They've been trying to get me together with anything that had two eyes." Will gingerly sat next to him, causing the bed to dip a little and sending Nico every so slightly sliding towards the center.

"Hey, now," Will tried to smile. "I bet there are some pretty hot cyclopses out there." He laughed in surprise. He seemed to do that a lot. "Cyclopsi? Cycloposes?" He stretched out his legs and leaned against metal backboard. "Ouch, that thing's hard. Um… I brought tea." He didn't move. "Here… green with lemon. Sorry, continue." Nico didn't particularly feel like talking, but wanted to say _something_. Will's attention was on him, and mainly-almost-sort of-entirely on him. He blew a strand of hair away from his eyes, lacing his fingers around the tea

"Don't you just get tired of people planning, and cross planning, and keeping secrets?" Will contemplated this carefully.

"Yes." He decided. Nico decided to stop talking, and shifted his gaze from the tent wall. Will was humming something ever-so-softly under his breath.

"What are you humming?" Nico didn't feel like talking about himself, but he didn't want Will to stop. Will was nice. And he was trying to reach out, even if Nico wasn't the best at reaching out himself. He dusted away his thoughts in time to hear Will's reply.

"It's just a song from… from a musical." Nico studied him carefully. He didn't seem uncomfortable, exactly, but he didn't seem pleased with Nico catching him humming.

"What's wrong with it?" Nico was honestly curious.

"Nothing's wrong with it… it's just a bit odd." Will laughed. "I mean, the first line is 'secrets are the enemies of passion'." Will colored a bit. Nico couldn't help smiling.

"Seriously? Secrets are the- wow. Just… wow."

"That's not all. There's… speaking true will get you through the day… truth is not a thing that one should ration. But I think you think of it that way." Will had started singly softly midway through. "Never keeps a sin inside the closet... always give the facts a fighting chance... every time you do it's a deposit... in the long-time bank of your romance…" Will paused a minute. "Keep no secrets… if you want him to remain your lover… share all secrets... there is a world you might discover... keep no secrets… he should always know exactly who you are... bare your secrets and your marriage will be happier by far." Will stopped. "Addams Family musical." Nico exhaled deeply.

"So _that's_ what the Addams Family is. Leo decided to reference it. He said I looked like… who was it… Pugsley? I googled him later… yeah." Will was gazing intently at Nico, and it was making him a bit uncomfortable.

"No," Will said softly. "You don't look anything at all like Pugsley." Nico froze. Almost instantly, Will looked almost like he wanted out of the conversation. "You look more like Morticia." He blurted, faking a laugh. "The legs are practically identical." He wiggled his eyebrows. Nico immediately leaped off the bed.

"Stop it already!" Nico headed towards the small tent flap that separated the two rooms. Will grabbed his arm, pulling him back to the bed.

"Wait a minute! So, where are we?" Dark eyes met blue ones. They looked soft. Vulnerable.

If Will were Percy, Nico would mumble something and run off. If Will were Hazel, this wouldn't even be happening since Nico didn't _have _problems with Hazel. If Will were Leo, Nico would threaten him with every torture in Tartarus, which was his usual way of dealing with Leo. If Will were Frank, Nico would ignore him. If Will were Reyna, Nico would reassure her with stiff lips and lock himself in his room. If Will were Piper, Nico would try to avoid being charmspoken and do whatever he needed to bow out gracefully. If Will were Annabeth, Nico would listen to the rant that would ensue and sprint off as soon as he was free.

But Will wasn't any of them. He was stupid, song-singing, tea-bringing, sunshine causing Will. And Nico had no idea how to deal with him.

"Well," Nico managed. "We're… friends."

"Good friends?" Will pressed.

"I suppose. Good friends." Nico admitted.

"Best friends?" Will seemed dead serious.

"Wow," Nico managed a shaky laugh. "What are we, ten?" As soon as he finished his sentence, the serious Will was shelved, and the teasing one slipped back on.

"Yes, we are. Pinky promise?" Will offered his last finger to Nico. Nico let out an embarrassed laugh.

"Time at the infirmary really stuck in your heart, huh?" Nonetheless, he locked pinkies with Will.

"Good." Will inhaled deeply. "Wonderful. I'm going to find Percy and ask him for some advice about staying underwater. I need to patch up a nereid who sliced open her arm on a rock. Unfortunately-" Will shrugged on a jacket- "Water makes things bleed. A lot. Can I bring you anything, Morticia?" Nico rolled his eyes.

"You aren't going to let that drop, are you?" Will grinned.

"Never, sweetheart. Never."


	3. The Leo is Falling! The Leo is Falling!

**It's time for… (drumroll, please!) REVIEW RESPONDING! *Smiles evilly***

**Treebutton- You… Lord of the Rings… you… *faints*. **_**I am not alone…. truly! No one is alone… really!**_

**Lupine-lunaris- I… i make u cry? *Eyes well up*. THANK YOU! I hope these chapters make you happy!**

**GriffinGirl8655- Thank you, thank you very much. *Takes bow. Falls over.* I hope my depiction of the characters continues to be adorable!**

**Guest- Well, ya see, telling you wouldn't be in the spirit of being cruel and pretending people are waiting on the edge of their seats for updates. It makes me happy. Don't question. : )**

"Nico di Angelo." A composed voice floated down to him. "Do you mind if I sit next to you?" Nico looked up.

"Reyna! Sure! Go ahead!" Nico ginned at her, patting the seat on the bench next to him invitingly. Reyna sat carefully, her dark hair tucked into a sleek braid and her blue button-down creased perfectly. Even jeans looked regal on her, and Nico was, and not for the first time, struck by the thought that she was like an old-time, black and white film star. Gorgeous, with perfect posture and stunning features. All she needed was a dust of powder, dark lipstick, and she was good to go.

"Nico, you're happy." Classic Reyna. Straight to the point. She lifted a slice of tomato to her mouth with her fork. "I've never seen you happy. I like that you _are_ happy. And Nico," Reyna's dark eyes didn't change, even if her voice did, not cracking, but fumbling over the words. Reyna, tongue-tied? "Whatever you need me to do to help you _stay_ happy, I will do it." She tossed her braid over her shoulder with a flick of her head, eyes firmly on her salad. Some emotion rose up in Nico, almost overflowing, almost sending his mouth spitting useless, jumbled words out. Was this what friendship was like? Someone willing to do whatever you needed just for you to smile more often?

"Reyna…" Nico stopped. "Thank you, but, I don't really know why I'm happy." _Li-er... _the Greek chorus in his head sang. _You know exactly why!_ Nico occasionally wondered if he was the only one with singers living in his brain. He leaned over his food and took another bite of hamburger.

"I don't like prying into people's lives," Reyna began, tone cool and firm. "But I know exactly why you're happy. I'm not going to embarrass you by saying it," Nico quickly flicked his eyes around the deserted dining hall to reassure himself that no one was watching. "If he hurts you, I will hurt _him_ so bad that he will regret ever looking at you. Nico…" Reyna had stopped eating her salad, and started tracing greek symbols in the condensation from her glass of water.

"Reyna, no one can hurt me. I'm not going to fall apart. And I don't even like him that way. He's just a friend." Nico truly believed himself, but Reyna looked at him sadly.

"You've turned yourself to ice." Reyna drew a Ω in the ring of water. "And this boy is melting you. But once the ice is in a puddle in the floor, you can't scoop it up again. Once it's melted, the form it had is gone unless you have a mold. And-" Reyna sighed in frustration, and swept most of her uneaten salad into a small carry-out box the pavilion had started stocking when people complained of wanting to eat at their tents.

"I'm going to be all right, Reyna." Nico looked straight into her eyes, willing her to believe it.

"Nico di Angelo," Reyna stood, swinging her legs over the splinter-filled wooden bench. "You are the best friend I've ever had." She left, braid swinging.

* * *

><p>"Nico!" Will burst into the tent. He was toting a yellow laptop, which was dangling from his hand with such abandon Nico winced. "We need to name her." Nico blinked.<p>

"We need to _what_?" Will pulled open the laptop.

"We need to _name_ her!" He insisted, exasperated.

"The flour?" Nico frowned. "It's an inanimate object. I won't name a bag of flour. It's absolutely-" His words were cut off as Will scooched next to him and laid half the laptop on his right leg. Nico sighed. "Fine. We'll name the stupid flour." Will grinned.

"I _knew_ there was a reason I married you!" Nico groaned.

"Shut up."

"C'mon, Morticia." Will scanned the list of names. "Ooh! Alouette! That's pretty!" Nico rolled his eyes.

"Like, Alouette, jaunty alouette?" Will frowned.

"Hey, don't diss the French." Nico sighed.

"I vote no." Will pouted.

"Fine." He scrolled down to the bottom of the page."Hipster baby names?" He reluctantly clicked on it.

"Fine, but personally, I think being a hipster is too mainstream." Nico fake grumbled.

"How about… Dixie?" Will tilted his head.

"Stop it with the musical references already!" Nico groaned.

"Hey! Hazel's considered a hipster baby name!" Will started laughing uncontrollably. "Oh, wow, I cannot _wait _to tell her!" Nico batted away Will's hand and clicked on vintage baby names.

"I'm tired of these new-age names," He grumbled. "Let's stick with something normal, like…" He scanned the list. "Dorothea! See? Pretty, feminine…" Will doubled over.

"Feminine? Nico di Angelo rejects interesting names, but accepts one name because it's _feminine?_" Will cackled.

"Being the wicked witch of the west is _not_ attractive. And stop right there with any suggestive comments!" Nico stole away the laptop, turning and seeing a name that made his eyebrows shoot up. "Grain? That's a name? What on-" Will snatched it back.

"Not as bad as… oh, my gods."

"What? What?" Nico tried to see.

"People name their _kid_ this?" Will giggled.

"What is it?" Nico pounced for the laptop.

"Fine! I'll read it out loud." Will took a deep breath. "Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious." Nico couldn't say anything for minute.

"Think about what this person has to go through during kindergarten!" He marveled. Will was laughing so hard he couldn't breathe, and Nico smiled faintly, a bit proud he could make Will laugh. They both looked at each other, then at the screen, and back at each other.

"Maybe they go by a nickname," Will managed to get out.

"What would the nickname be? Soup?" Nico took another look at the Name your Baby page.

"Frag."

"Ug, that's awful. Maybe Cal?"

"Like the evil computer thing?"

"That's _Hal_, not _Cal._" Nico stared at the page, remembering a website he once stumbled across during something for school. "Give me that, I have an idea." He typed in , navigated to the filter button, and typed in _Sunshine_. "There. Now we can dedicate this beautiful bag of flour to your dad." Nico couldn't keep a straight face, but Will was pretty happy with the list of names.

"Hmmm… Marisol! That's pretty! But it needs something…" Will typed in _dark_. Up popped a list of names, the first one being Melanie. "All right. Marinie."

"Marry me?" Nico couldn't resist. "Pretty gutsy move at sixteen…" Will pushed him.

"Idiot. Marinie. Pronounced 'marry knee'. Pretty?" Nico smiled.

"A combination of light and dark. My compliments to the master."

"You better believe it." Will stood up and stretched, Nico shutting the laptop and setting it on one of the bedside tables to charge. Nico watched his goofy grin, heart thawing a bit. There was something about Will he couldn't put his finger on. Maybe it was his overprotective nature. Maybe it was that he could find joy in the most insignificant things. Maybe it was his slightly annoying sense of humor. Nico knew what was happening, as it was similar to what happened with Percy, but this was different. He had liked Percy as a figurehead. As what he stood for. He liked Will for… Will. Will didn't put on serious airs, or ever try to be so annoyingly loyal. Will was a healer, not a fighter. Nico had tried to repress it, but he knew he could feel the before-earthquake tremors, and he figured he better tell Will how he felt before the emotions were strong enough to crush him when he was rejected.

"Let's take a walk." Will said abruptly

"A… walk?" Nico unconsciously backed away a few steps. _What was he doing? Was it… could it be… no, way. Not possible._ Will rolled his eyes.

"Yes, Morticia, a walk. Don't worry, as soon as it's over, I'll let you hide away under the bed like a creepy introvert." Will frowned. "Actually, no, I won't. You might have allergies. Do you have allergies? I have allergies. I-" Nico cut him off.

"Fine. Let's go for a… walk." Nico looked around the tent. "But first, we might want to find Marinie." Will sighed.

"Great. Where'd we put her?"

"I'll get the bedroom, you search the living room."

* * *

><p>"Nico!" Will sat back on his heels, dragging out the bag of flour. "Why'd you put our baby under the bed?" Nico glanced from where he was checking under the sofa.<p>

"Sure, blame the father." He grumbled, pushing himself up and examining the flour. Will frowned.

"I'm _also_ the father." He said, his voice laced with confusion. Nico didn't exactly know how he got himself into this.

"Whatever. Wait. Why is the bag so… thin?" The burlap bag was only half full. Nico flipped it over.

"Gods, Solace, you killed the baby!" Nico grabbed a broom from the closet and sweeping out the dust-riddled flour from under the bed. Scooping it into his hands, he shoved it through the frayed hole, causing it to gape open further. Will started laughing.

"We are the _worst_ parents _ever!_" He put on a mock-announcer voice. "We will now interrupt this pre-scheduled program for a public service announcement. Flour bags are people, too!" Nico groaned.

"Do you have needle and thread? I might be able to sew it together." This only made Will laugh harder.

"Nico, I don't think you understand how to sew." Nico huffed.

"Don't be ridiculous. You stick the needle through both sides as necessary. Repeat until closed." Will threw up his hands in fake defeat.

"Fine! Here," He pulled a needle from his shirt pocket, and some thread from his pants pocket. "In case of an emergency suture job," He explained, seeing Nico's questioning look.

"Medical nerd," Nico grumbled. "Do you keep a stethoscope on you too?" Nico held the needle to the light, jabbing the thread at it.

"Hades," He cursed, again trying to thread it. Will bit his lip to keep from laughing, plucking the needle from Nico's hand and threading it in one try. Nico glared, and stuck it through the burlap, pulling it free with an irritated yank. The thread slipped out easily. Nico tried again. The thread wouldn't stop at the end, but kept being pulled through entirely.

"You have to _knot _the end, 'Ticia," Will gurgled, unable to keep from laughing. He again took the needle and knotted the end firmly. "Sweetheart, just let me do it." Nico growled, but stepped aside, raking his hand through his hair. Will quickly sewed up the cut, needle flashing so fast it looked like the hole was closing up on it's own. He knotted off the thread, cut it with a small pair of scissors he had in his pocket, humming a fast song under his breath. Soon he looked up triumphantly. "Done."

"What…" Nico was looking at the clock. "You sewed up that gaping hole in six seconds!" Will shrugged.

"I've done it a million times. And, uh, you were timing me?" Nico could feel the blood in his cheeks, so he disguised it by examining the stitches. "Chiron won't know the difference," Will said proudly.

"Eh," Nico pretended to be aloof. "This thread's loose." Will's eyes widened.

"What? Where?" He pulled out the scissors and prepared to slice open the bag again, but Nico snatched them away.

"It's a bag of flour, not a real child!" Nico tried to grab his arm, but Will dodged it, and started pacing.

"But what if it really _was_ real? They might die, all because of me!" Nico _did_ manage to grab his arm, and pull him down to sit on the floor.

"Solace. Calm. Down. You are freaking out over nothing." Will jumped up again, completely ignoring Nico, scissors poised to strike Marinie. Nico grabbed Will's shoulders and willed himself to shadow travel to the Half Blood Hill.

* * *

><p>"Nico di Angelo!" Will shook the smaller boy, and instantly took his temperature. "You shadow traveled? You are so infuriating I can't believe… ug!" Nico stood placidly, letting him rant. When Will finally slumped to the ground, Nico inhaled.<p>

"Will, I think I need to tell you something." Will looked up, and Nico could swear there was something… hopeful in his eyes. Nico pushed aside the warning signals in his hands, and took Will's wrists in his hands. His pulse seemed to speed up the tiniest bit.

"Nico-" Will began, not making any effort to extricate his wrists.

"Shut up, Solace. One sentence, and that uselessly flapping mouth of yours can continue." Nico took a deep breath. "I think that I…"

"AAAAARRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGG!" Nico let go instantly, ducking for cover as a… flaming mass of fire fell to the ground. What the…

"LEO YOU IDIOT! Do you have _any_ idea how long it took for... WHY DID YOU DO THIS?" Piper fell out of the sky, too, landing a lot more gracefully and setting Leo on fire all over again with her eyes. Nico looked up. He gasped. Will followed his gaze, and put his hands on his hips.

"Those idiots are _so _dead…" The entire Argo 2 ship was packed with campers, hovering about seven feet off the ground. Half were filming, half yelling at Leo, and the entire ship was in discord. Will clapped his hands.

"Oh, my gods!" He yelled. "You sent the _entire camp_ to _spy_ on us?" Everyone stared at their shoes.

"And the gods, too," Calypso muttered, tugging so hard at her ponytail she let out a small yelp. Will then noticed the giant cameras mounted on the belly of the ship. "You're broadcasting this to _OLYMPUS?_" Thunder rumbled in the distance. It sounded like a weak apology.

"We just wanted to record the moment Solangelo bursts into bloom like a delicate rose with petals of everlasting death!" A camper whined, reluctantly snapping his camera closed. _What the…?_

"Solangelo?" Will facepalmed. "You made a _ship_ name for us? So, essentially, everyone in the camp is watching. Everyone on Olympus is watching. Did you get WRAL to show it on television, too? Are the _mortals_ watching? Do you know how long it took for Nico to be friends with me? And now you're hoping for something more and… Gods! I'm done! Nico, let's go re-sew Marinie's cut." Will turned to find Nico, but he was completely gone, footprints leading towards the cabin. Will's stomach twisted, and he ran off to find Nico.

"Guys," Leo said nervously, patting out the last of the flames. "I think we did something bad." Thunder rumbled in the distance to solidify it, and a few dead rose petals came drifting down. Calypso plucked one from the air.

"If you don't get them back together, none of you will never have a happy relationship again. Love, Aphrodite," She read. A few people glanced at the sky nervously.

"We have to fix this." Annabeth murmured, holding her nose as a blast of noxious perfume swept over the hill. Travis's gaze flicked to Katie. She looked so pretty, her wide eyes filled with worry and her blonde ponytail twitching in the breeze.

"Yeah," He said with uncharacteristic grimmness. "We do indeed."

**(Apologies for stealing the first few sentences of the following from the Addams Family. The rest, however, is my own.**

**Leo- Never fails. Let nature take it's course- chaos! Is this anyway to end an act? **

**GSS- Ahem.**

**Leo- Um... chapter? Actually, yes. But I think it would be better for everyone something very helpful were to happen... But let's wait for that, because Miss GimmeSomeSolace decided she runs the world and wants to torture you through a depressing chapter. And furthermore-**

**GSS- Shut up, Leo. I'm doing it for the good of cliches. It's a time-honored pattern- they become friends, they start to confess feelings, something bad happens, and boom! They avoid each other and become increasingly paranoid! Then something really coincidental happens, and-**

**Leo- *Claps hand over GSS's mouth.* OK, folks, that's our show for today! See you next time! Let's hope you don't get spoilers!" *Laughs nervously***

**GSS- *Grumbles angrily.***

**Jeepers, how many of you actually read authors notes? I'm going to find out. Whoever wants to prove that they read this must squeeze in some reference from any Percy Jackson book! I better go, I need to visit the dam library (See what I just did there?) : ) The best one gets a prize! Points for not using the dam reference again!**


	4. Let's Live Before We Die

**I am going to respond to everyone in a succession of extremely bad limericks, because I'm just insane that way. I don't know why… I feel like it.**

**Guest:**

**A girl who adored fanfiction**

**Typed instead of improving her diction**

**She cliffhangered here**

**And she cliffhangered there**

**And she's now hiding, guilty, in the kitchen!**

Yeah, that was pathetic, but very fun to write!

**Person:**

**When writing furiously no one thinks**

**Whether blue and white makes pink**

**When you're in the zone**

**And left all alone**

**You're inclined to not see missing links.**

In other words, I didn't see that, so thanks for pointing it out! I was in the "zone", and didn't do my math properly.

**Guest:**

**When you see a new review**

**You wonder if it's nice or mean, don't you?**

**When I saw that it "is cute"**

**I smiled wider than Groot**

**Which isn't saying much, but anyway, toodle-oo!**

*Sigh*. That was absolutely terrible. I apologize. Anyway, thanks for the review~

**Rainbowchameleon**:

**The only person to read my AN**

**I take my hat off to you, friend!  
>I award to you<strong>

**A pink unicorn or two**

**And the best limerick that I can lend!**

THANK YOU FOR REVIEWING WITH A REFRENCEEEEEEEEEEE :)

I can write better than this, trust me. These are just a bit harder, since I don't know what to write in response to some reviews...

"All right, people, nothing to see here!" Percy yelled. "Let's pack 'er up!" Hazel lowered the Argo 2 to the ground, jumping lightly onto the grass and switching off the cameras.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" The anguished scream echoed from Olympus, reverberating through the hills and causing a few mortals to wonder what was happening. Was it a dying buffalo? A cat being stepped on? Only the gods truly knew what it was, and by that point, they were so used to it, most of them simply ignored it.

"It's OK, babe," Ares patted Aphrodite on the back, clearly unsure how to proceed. Aphrodite was sobbing harder than the day Paris died. She beat her fists on the blank TV that had previously been broadcasting Nico and Will's "confessions".

"It's not OK!" She cried. "They'll never, ever, ever get back together!" She glared at Apollo. "And don't you dare sing anything!" Apollo held up his hands in surrender.

"You're clearly upset,

I wouldn't make a reference

I am not that cruel." He smirked. "Hah. Perfect." Athena was absentmindedly weaving a handkerchief on a small hand-held loom.

"Ingenious little mortals," She murmured, pausing to look down at the loom. "Portable and simple to use." Turning to Apollo, she gazed at a space above him thoughtfully. "Would reference be three syllables? Or two?" Apollo frowned.

"Damn." He muttered. "Ref-rence. Ref-er-ence." He scrawled something down in a little notebook. Athena continued weaving, eyes fixed on the book in her lap while her fingers knotted the strands together nimbly. Aphrodite wailed out,

"How can you _say_ that? This was the best ship to every sail since Percabeth! I think this is a _better_ ship than Percabeth! This is more meaningful, right? Love born out of… born out of paaaaaaain!" Aphrodite was probably producing a gallon of tears a minute, but her eyes refused to get red or puffy, her eye makeup didn't run, and her face didn't turn blotchy. Athena slipped her weaving off of the loom and looked at the pattern for the first time. It was a golden sun, with obsidian rocks wreathing around it. She looked at it distastefully.

"Poisoning the lot of us with her idiotic 'ship' nonsense," Athena mumbled. "Even weaving is not refuge from the mundane talk of love anymore!" She handed the handkerchief to Aphrodite, who nodded thanks and wiped her eyes. Wringing the fabric out, she turned to Hermes.

"Don't you think everyone deserves a chance at love?" She asked, voice trembling. Hermes was busy on his phone, and opened his mouth to say, "No, not especially," when he saw Ares. Ares was staring at him murderously, with a look that said, _You make my girlfriend cry, I make you cry ten times more than she does._ Hermes gulped, nodding meekly.

"Oh, yes, yes, of course!" He babbled. Aphrodite seemed triumphant.

"See! Hermes agrees!" She turned to her husband, who was busily twining scraps of metal together. "Hephaestus?" Hephaestus held his palm flat. A delicate metal butterfly twitched a wing, soaring to perch in Aphrodite's hair. She seemed to take this as a yes. Taking a deep breath, she sat back in her throne. Ares flicked the metal butterfly into Hephaestus's palm, reaching to stroke his girlfriend's hair comfortingly.

"Babe, let love take the course love wants to take," He said soothingly. "And then, if they don't get together because of Leo blowing the camper's cover, I'll pulverize him." Aphrodite's eyes welled with tears.

"That is _so_ hot," she sobbed, throwing her arms around him.

Nico stormed through the woods, hacking away at anything that got in his way with Backbiter. _Whack!_ There went a bush. _Whack!_ A dead log. _Whack whack whack!_ Nico sank down to the ground. How could they? How? He knew they cared about him, but how could they do this? Didn't they understand how painful having his life just a click of the TV away _was _for him? Nico's sword slipped from where it had been propped up, tracing down his leg and causing a thick line of blood to appear. Nico cried out in frustration, hand instinctively flying to his leg. Making his way over to the river, he cupped a handful of water and let it spill over the cut, the pink water sinking down into the soil. A naiad waved cheerfully at him, just to widen her eyes when she saw his leg.

"Hi," Nico said, trying not to sound impatient. "It's not much. I've had much worse." The naiad looked miserable at this, and Nico felt guilty for upsetting her. "Really, I'll be OK," He insisted. She darted away, and Nico leaned against a rock and sighed. How could he ever think Will could like him? Even a naiad couldn't stand him for more than a minute or two, and the naiads flirted with anyone who walked past. He heard a burble. The naiad had appeared again, toting an obviously hand-woven basket. She propelled it out of the water with a jet of water, and Nico caught it reflexively. Inside was a small bottle of nectar. Nico chuckled.

"Not good with blood, huh?" The naiad shook her head, gesturing in what was obviously a prompt to drink the nectar. Nico obeyed, swallowing the tiniest sip he could, watching the cut shrink to a scratch and disappear. The naiad did a backflip, and moved her arms in a large sweep towards the caves where the naiads were rumored to live. "I understand," Nico promised. "I have to go, too." The naiad flashed one last smile, and dove into the current, elegantly shooting through the water. Nico sighed, pushing himself up from his seat next to the stream.

Nico learned that he was extraordinarily good at avoiding people.

Will slept until 7:00, where he would get dressed and make his daily cup of tea before hurrying over to the infirmary where he worked until 4:00. From there he would arrive back at the tent at 4:15, and relax for a while before dinner.

Nico typically didn't sleep during the nighttime anyway. It was perfectly convenient to slip in at 7:15 and sleep until 4:00, when he would snag a plate of food from the kitchen and have dinner with the naiad, who didn't seem to eat anything. Nico decided to call her Mariana, because of the water, and ignored the small twinge in his heart whenever his tongue slipped and he called her Marinie. She seemed to take great enjoyment in showing off, though, and kept trying to teach Nico how to do a backflip.

"Unfair, Marina," Nico would grumble good-naturedly. "Motion works differently underwater." This naiad, the first one Nico had ever found that wasn't flirtatious, seemed to have a softening effect on him.

And something about her… maybe it was the eyes, not ocean blue, but more sky blue. And the long, blonde hair. Or maybe the mischievous look she'd get in her eyes when she executed another flawless trick. She reminded him of Will.

"Pleeeeeeeeeeease, Zeus!" Aphrodite begged. "I can't make it rain! Only you can! We need to trap them inside the tent so they work things out. Pleeeeeeeeeease?" Zeus grunted, shaking her off.

"I don't choose the weather based on the love affair of two demigod boys, especially if they aren't my own." He strode towards the forge. Hephaestus was supposed to fix his dented master bolt…

"Zeus, if you don't create a thunderstorm, I'll tell Hera about that fling you had with that milkmaid yesterday," Aphrodite twined her hair around her finger, the shade changing from red to brown to black to blonde, finally landing on a chocolate hue. "Pretty thing, she was. Tall. Elegant. What was her name again…?" Zeus's eyes narrowed.

"Fine!" He flicked his finger outside. White, puffy clouds darkened, filling with water and lightning. Another flick and they sailed away slowly, so much rain filling them that they were pulled down by the weight. "This is the last time I'm ever doing this for you." He grumbled. Aphrodite laughed.

"Sure, Zeusy. Sure."

"Curse it!" Nico pulled his jacket over his head, sprinting for the tent. _Please let Will be away… please let Will be away… please let Will be a-_

"Nico! You… um… actually came!" _Damn it._ Nico brushed his hair away from his face, studying the boy in front of him. Will was holding a dented guitar, sheet music scattered in front of him.

"I just came to get my rain coat," Nico lied smoothly. "I thought I could slip in without disturbing you." The lightning flashed, and suddenly a tree lit up like a Christmas tree, toppling right over the tent.

"Nico!" Will grabbed him, pulling him into the corner of the tent just as the tree smashed an inch away from them, sealing them in a triangular space a few feet wide. Nico groaned, twisting around.

"We're trapped. The hunters charmed the tents into the soil so the Stoll brothers couldn't knock them over. Our exits are blocked." Nico tried hitting the side of the tent. Fail. Will grabbed his shoulder.

"Nico! Listen to me. I planned this whole thing out, and it references the Addams family, and… just listen." Will shuffled around nervously, reaching for the guitar. "I left it on the other side of the tree. Great. Never mind, I'll have to do it without." Nico wavered a minute, but crossed his arms.

"OK. Talk." Will took a deep breath.

"Well, sons of Apollo find it a bit easier to put things in poem or song. And-" Nico interrupted.

"Will, I have learned enough poetry from your dad to last twenty lifetimes." Will looked nervous.

"Good thing I put it in… song?" He stole a glance to see how Nico would take it. He crossed his arms, but didn't respond except one word.

"All right." Will cleared his throat.

"Let's live before we die

Let's laugh before we cry

Let's hold each other tight and dance." Nico made a small noise in his throat, but didn't interrupt. Will continued cautiously.

"Let's try before we fail.

Let's fly before we bail.

Let's keep things black and white, and dance.

The world, you see, can only be our friend

If you, and me, keep dancing 'till the end

Can't we see eye to eye

And oversimplify

Let's live before we die, and dance." Nico rolled his eyes.

"You waltz in here with a song about living before we die and dancing, and you expect me to just fall into your arms?" Will responded cheekily.

"What I lack in depth I make up for in shallowness." He leaned against the wall.

"You really think you can make this work with a joke?" Will shrugged.

"Last thing I try before the poison." He continued singing softly.

"Although we're lost and drifting out to sea

We're side by side and gloomy as can be.

Let's live before we die

Let's laugh before we cry

Let's hold each other tight

And dance." He looked hopefully at Nico, extending his hand. Nico took it, but hesitated.

"I have no idea how to dance," He whispered truthfully. Will was obviously trying not to laugh.

"It's more of a symbolic thing in this case," Will said. Bravely he leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek, and Nico did nothing to protest.

***Rushes out frantically* Stop! Stop the tumbling cheerleaders! We aren't over **_**yet!**_ **There's still a chapter or two left!**

**I know I come across as stuck up, I swear I'm doing it as ironically as possible.**

**Anyone who wants to hear the tune to the song, I'll send you a PM with the tune if you PM me inquiring.**

**Anyway, stay tuned! We ain't done yet!**


	5. Ever

The small, silver dragon curved down from the sky, metal glinting like as the sun seemed to turn and admire the metal torpedo. It was slightly wobbly, and tipped over a smidge, but no one noticed the flaws of her piloting as a beautiful girl gracefully leaped from the back, her brand-new tennis shoes bending the grass as she landed. Shaking back her ponytail, which bounced against the small of her back, she turned to a boy with curly, dark hair.

"Show off," she laughed. "I know it's my birthday, but you built me a _miniature dragon?_" Leo grinned.

"I saw how you hung out with Festus more than you hang out with me, and figured maybe you'd abandon him and pay more attention to your-" He coughed an 'ahem'- "_Boyfriend_ if you had a dragon of your own." Calypso rolled her eyes, pulling Leo by the arm back to the dragon, swatting his hand away playfully when he attempted to take her waist and lift her onto the cushion strapped to the dragon's back.

"Please fasten your seatbelt, and keep all hands and feet inside the dragon. Here… we… go!" Leo gave the dragon a gentle slap, and Calypso shrieked as she was lifted into the air for the second time.

From a safe vantage point inside the woods, Nico watched Leo shout instructions on how to guide the draggon.

"Hoist the flipper-flopper!" He shouted. "Man the jellybean-boots!" He saw Calypso laugh, and heard her threaten to knock him into the river if he didn't stop trying to confuse her with fake terms. As she attempted to steer the dragon back to ground, he tilted alarmingly, finally tipping completely upside down. Leo let out a cry, running for the dragon, but Calypso dug her heels in tightly as the dragon veered towards the river. Her caramel ponytail skimming the water and kicking up a stream of water in it's wake, she tentatively reached her hands down to touch the water, her tightly clenched feet the only thing from keeping her from falling in.

"Whoo hoo!" She shouted, slowing the dragon down to a hover. She dropped neatly onto the nearby riverbank as Leo caught up to her, and flipped the dragon right side up.

"Hey!" He yelled at the dragon. "You tried to kill my girlfriend!" He put his hands on his hips and scowled at the sheepish looking dragon, who snorted what looked like an apology.

"Leo!" Calypso wrung out her ponytail, a few drops landing on his foot. "I love him." Leo's scowl melted as she laughed lightly. "He has a temper, just like me." She patted the dragon on the head, and he let a lazy stream of smoke puff out of his mouth. "I'm going to name him Quoque."

"Uh… earth to Sunshine? That's Latin for "also"." Calypso straightened up.

"Yes. Festus. Quoque." She smiled. "I am happy… _also_." Leo's eyes seemed to melt, and he leaped on top of the dragon.

"Y'see, I built this seat a bit wide…" He grinned. "I think there's enough room for two…" Calypso giggled, and jumped on in front of him, and Leo gently tapped the dragon to send him flying.

"Nico!" Nico jumped back from the bush.

"Ag! Is it just me, or is half my life made up of you scaring me?" He groused. Will's eyes twinkled.

"C'mon. I need to show you something."

* * *

><p>"Hold it up to the light…" Will tilted his head, guiding the tip of his own thread through the eye. Nico groaned, stabbing the needle into the crumbling bits of dirt next to him moodily.<p>

"This really isn't necessary, Will," he grumbled. "If I ever need a dress, although gods know if it comes to that, I pray my father will send up a skeleton to slice off my head, Hazel will be perfectly willing to lend me one." He collapsed on his back with a thump. Will picked the needle from the ground, handing it back to Nico, who groaned and sat back up.

"You are _going_ to learn this," He said firmly. "You've helped me, and now I'm going to help you." Nico groaned again, but jammed the thread towards the eye again, causing it to bend against the metal. Will took the thread, placing his fingers right in front of the tips of Nico's, sliding it through the hole easily. He started to knot the end, but Nico snatched the thread back, sending the needle sliding down the taught thread between them like a miniature zipline.

"I can do _that_. I'm not incompetent." Will watched him twist the end in a loop and feed the end through it, pulling it tight. Will's ever-present smile broadened. Nico's belligerence wasn't annoying, anymore. Just a part of him, like his dark eyes or his black jacket. Will flattened the thoughts in his brain, looking at Nico's work critically. Nico pedaled the needle through the rip Will had sliced through the pillow with a small razor blade, eyes focused intently with concentration. The stitches were surprisingly small, fairly neat.

_A dance. Well, sort of._

_A steady occasional hint of something more._

_A kiss. Well, on the cheek, but a kiss._

_Where… where _are_ we? _Will sighed. Maybe the line between _something_ and friends was supposed to be clear, but the jagged stitches holding the two together were blurring it. The puzzle pieces fit together neatly, but the picture was water-stained, and the photo on the box faded with age. Will groaned in frustration. Dating? Really, really good friends? Ug. It took him a minute to realize Nico had asked him something.

"Excuse me?" Will tried to focus on something other than his brain. Nico furrowed his brow.

"I… I asked if you were all right. You look a bit odd. Do you need a glass of water?" Will tried for Victorian lady fainting couch, fanning himself languidly.

"Actually, I need some smelling salts," he said faintly. "Do you think you could get Hazel to fetch some for me?" Nico promptly punched him in the arm. "Ow!" Will's hand flew instinctively to his shoulder. "Would you _stop_ that?" Nico didn't apologize. Will didn't expect him too. Staring at the sky, he impulsively fell backwards, pretending not to feel the small jolt of pain that laced around him for a second when his back hit the dirt. At least he probably looked nonchalant. Nico hesitated, leaning back an inch a minute until Will rolled his eyes, wrapping his fingers around Nico's wrist and yanking him down next to him.

"I fall, you fall, 'Ticia."

"I would have…" Nico began, taking on the argumentative tone Will knew so well. Will turned his head to face Nico, who instantly looked at the sky, his olive skin tinting with rose. Will couldn't help but think… Nico, shy? The words just didn't… compute.

"So…" Will let the word be drawn out.

"So." Nico agreed, pretending to keep looking at the sky but instead looking at Will out of peripheral vision. Will could tell, although he didn't know _how_ he could tell.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Will meant the sky, which was the kind of blue that looked like someone had stirred blue food coloring in a pan of water. Streaks of clouds puffed across the sky lazily.

"Yes." Nico turned to face Will dead-on. "Beautiful." He didn't look away. It was Will who blushed this time, propelling himself up by the palms of his hands to mask it, if only momentarily. He held out his had to Nico, who took it reluctantly, not even using it to pull himself up, but letting it dangle while he pushed himself up with his other hand.

"Gods. Your hands are freezing!" Will said without thinking. Nico shrugged.

"You have no idea. No matter what I do, my hands are perpetually ice-cold." He gave a little self-deprecating laugh. Will lifted one of Nico's hands, lacing the fingers on both pairs of his hand around the fine-boned wrist, squeezing and moving down towards the palm. Nico tensed. "What… what are you doing?"

"Trying to warm up your hands," Will said, lying through his teeth, picking up the other one and doing the same, letting the old one drop to Nico's side. "Better?" Nico yanked his hand away.

"Much, thank you," Nico mumbled, wrapping his long arms around himself tightly.

"You still cold?" Will rocked back on his heels, nodding towards his arms. Nico looked down at them, as if surprised by what they were doing, releasing the tension that was apparent in them and letting them hang limply.

"Nervous habit," He explained. Will raised an eyebrow and smirked.

"Oh. You nervous? Is it me?" He took a step closer to Nico, but could tell he had crossed some sort of line." He could see Nico bristle.

"Stop it! For the last time!" Nico growled. He started to walk away, but Will grabbed his thin wrist, spinning him back around. Nico fell straight into Will, knocking him over and pinning Will's twisting arm underneath his back.

"Arrg!" Will struggled to get his arm free, suddenly wincing as a sharp slice of pair rocked through his arm. Nico went rigid, scrambling off of him.

"Oh, gods, what happened? Did I hurt you? I-" Nico was wide-eyed with panic. Will instinctively placed his hand over Nico's mouth and closed his eyes.

"Mild fracture, probably from weight applied to my arm while being bent at odd angle. I must have fallen on something sharp, which sliced my arm badly enough I'll need stitches." Will glanced at the cut, which was pooling blood on the ground. "Crap. It's a bit worse than I…" Will's hand shot to the cut when another wave of pain hit it, glancing down at what had cut him. A sword blade. What the Hades? Where did it come from? Will forgot his arm for a minute, examining the blade. Rusted, with no hilt. Why would an old blade be in the middle of the forest? Will glanced at Nico, who wasn't looking at him, but instead pacing back and forth. Will silently slipped it underneath the tent, promising himself to examine it later.

"Give me the needle," Nico suddenly insisted, hand out.

"It's not…" Will bit his tongue until the stabbing feeling stopped, and continued. "Sterilized. It's unsafe to sew it without cleaning the needle."

"Would fire sterilize it?" Nico pressed. Will nodded.

"Well, yeah, but the only problem with that is that we don't have fire. Otherwise, that idea would be just…" Will clenched his fist, leaving fingernail marks on his palm, the arm both aching and stinging at the same time. "Peachy." He finished. Nico got up without a word, sprinting inside.

"What were you doing when she caught on fire?" He demanded, clutching the bag of flour.

"Well, I…" Will wracked his brains. "I had tripped over her, and she just..." Nico dropped the bag, giving it a vicious kick. Instantly, the flames started up, crackling gleefully. Nico carefully positioned the needle the air, letting it fall into the flames. Will watched Nico, who was pullling up fistfulls of sand from the riverbank and smothering the fire as soon as the needle seemed hot enough, with an eagle eye. Nico hesitantly touched the needle, picking it up when it was fairly cool, and threading it quickly. Will beamed.

"Told you you'd need to learn," he said, holding out his arm for Nico to begin stitching. Nico scowled.

"If I didn't know better-" He said through his teeth, needle flashing through the skin.

"Slow down!" Will was studying the stitches. Loose, perfect, decent, decent, loose...

"I'd say you set this up _just _ to prove a point," Nico continued, tying off the end in a firm knot. Will examined his arm.

"Nice job," he admitted. "I might not even have to get this checked out." Nico rolled his eyes.

"Hey, Sunshine, forget about the fracture?" Will looked up.

"What?" Nico tapped his arm lightly.

"You fractured it, too. I think… yeah, radius, not ulna. Hairline fracture, at worst. Probably the best fracture you could end up with. You'll have a cast for a few weeks and be perfectly fine," Nico turned towards outside of the forest. "We can't make a cast here, so you should go to the hospital."

"How'd you know that?" Nico turned back.

"Um… you told me." Will shook his head.

"No, there are two large bones running from the wrist to elbow-"

"Yeah. The radius and the ulna." Nico cut him off.

"How did you know it was the radius?" Will was genuinely curious. Nico shrugged.

"It's obvious by the way you're holding it. Perfectly level to the ground. Not gripping it too tightly. The swollen part is on the inside of your wrist, which is where the radius is. Simple analysis." Will tilted his head.

"Wow. You should help out in the infirmary more." Nico shuddered.

"No, thank you. I don't like sick people."

"Why not?" Will knew he sounded wistful, perhaps that was why Nico looked surprised.

"It's depressing." Nico picked up a smooth pebble, tossing it lightly into the lake, where it landed with a soft _plop_. Will laughed.

"You spend half your time with dead people. How's _that_ not depressing?" Nico startled, like he hadn't thought about it before.

"Well… some want to die. They're old, or wanted to meet up with someone they loved. And I sometimes help place all the demigods who died in, for example, the Titan War. Personally, I think most of them deserve Elysium, but it's getting pretty crowded. Dad's thinking of enlisting some of the ghosts to build a second Elysium. People like George Eiffel, or other famous architects would love to design it. And regular construction workers can do the actual building part.

"That sounds great," Will said, the meaningless phrase not registering in his ears as his arm gave another painful twinge. He tried not to jolt it as he stood up. "Should we go to the infirmary?" Nico nodded quickly.

"Yeah, let's… um, let's go. Sorry for keeping you from it." Will reached out.

"Wait. Where are we?" He couldn't help it. Nico drew himself up.

"Excuse me?" He asked, his fingers lacing together. Will hadn't noticed until now, but Nico had a surprising amount of nervous habits.

"Where are we. Are we dating? Are we just friends?" Nico shrugged.

"I have no idea whatsoever. I mean…" He looked at the ground. "You kissed me, I guess. Well, on the cheek, but…" Will tilted his head.

"So, you think it counts as dating if we kiss?" Nico was digging his fingers into his palm.

"How should I know? I mean… I guess, but… I'm not really good with these things." He pressed his palms together. "I'm just not…" He let out a sigh of frustration. "..._good_ with these things."

"Well," Will said softly. "Let's fix that." Nico took a deep breath.

"Yes. Let's." Nico took Will's uninjured hand, and together, they started to Camp Half Blood, the shadows of night being cleared by the rosy-fingered dawn.

* * *

><p><em>Epilogue:<em>

"Hey, there, pretty," Will cooed over a small baby. "You're so tiny!" Nico joined him.

"So… this is the one, huh?" Will groaned.

"I don't _know!_ This isn't like picking out a cat! This is a human _child_!" Nico reached over to squeeze his hand, glancing back at the little baby.

"She's beautiful," Nico sighed. Than he leapt back. "Gods!" The baby's nightdress, a soft, shell pink, was changing. A small, needlepoint daisy grew across the stomach, a dandelion drifting into her hand. The scent of pansies filled the air.

"Demeter." Nico said. It was all he _could_ say.

"So, we're?" Will looked at him hopefully.

"We have to." Nico smiled at the baby. "She's _perfect_."

"Miss?" Will reached out to tap an aide on the shoulder. "Where should we sign to adopt this baby?" Nico didn't listen to the answer. He touched the baby's finger, and whispered to her.

"Hey, there, Miss Marinie. We're going to love you, and keep you safe. And when you get big, your godmother, Reyna, will teach you to fight, and just laugh when you call her Ra Ra, and Aunt Hazel will spoil you rotten. And you'll grow roses, and sweet peas, and Will will wake up early and watch the sunrise with you, and you'll be happy." Nico swallowed, and went on. "And Percy will teach you to swim, and just wait 'till you meet Piper. She'll abandon all the "I'm a different child of Aphrodite" stuff, and take you shopping, and paint your toenails rose-red. Jason will take you flying, and Frank will do his best to entertain you with morphing into other animals, 'cause he's just a big, fluffy bear at heart. And I'll always be there, and even if you think I'm a bit odd at times, I'll never stop loving you." Nico took a deep breath. "Ever."

**Woah. Final chapter of a very, very short multi-chap. Whoo!**


End file.
